Greetings All:
Are you enjoying this weather? Hope so.
Last night I attended a fascinating talk on sludge and farmers’ land. I am happy to be able to share this with you all.
Here is a great quote to introduce the topic:
“Never adopt a practice that undermines the confidence of consumers in the safety of the food you produce. The application of sewage sludge to farmland does just that.”
Donald Good, Ontario Lawyer
Bio-solids are made from the solid waste that remains in human sewage-called sludge. In Halifax, this sludge is bleded with a liming agent. Only the worst thing is, if you mix it with lime, it causes the sludge to be more potent, not less. The reason why sludge is so dangerous is that it is accessible in our food chains.
Would you poison an earthworm or a bee or caterpillar? Maybe not intentionally-but every time chemicals in sludge, fertilizers, fire-retardants or many other strong chemicals are added to soil, whether with the knowledge or not, that’s what happens. The earthworms eat the mercury, zinc, copper, or lead and then a bird eats the earthworm, and spreads to plants and if we ingest a leafy plant, we eat it too. The cows suffer terribly once sludge is leeched onto the soil or grass because then they eat it and then we eat the meat of the cow and ingest the chemicals.
Then the cows waste away and die. Some farmers have put these chemicals onto their farmlands and then suffered terrible consequences. The damage is usually irreversible. The cows and sheep become terribly ill and since a farmer relies on his livestock, the farmer is usually financially ruined.
We all need to remember that it may be because of the tireless efforts of farmers that we all get to eat. So it struck an emotional chord within me when I heard the talk at Saint Mary’s University. Some farmers have managed to revive their farming businesses and livestock. It all comes down to opting for healthy soil and animals-being chemical free. Consider that some chemicals like those above take a hundred years to break down. Imagine what implications that will have on animals, soil, and food quality.
Nova Scotia has yet to ban cosmetic pesticides. New Brunswick and Prince Edward island have chosen to. We have to urge our gov’t to do the same. For more information, go to http://www.ecologyaction.ca/content/publications-0#pesticides.
An organic and hopefully chemical free garden or farmland is a more beautiful sight to behold. I guarantee birds and earthworms and other critters will visit such a place. My mother had a outdoor compost box in her yard that crawled with insects and critters. The soil, once everything had decomposed naturally made rich black soil. THe garden is truly marvelous and an example that we do not require strong harmful chemicals in order to produce food and such. But soil that has lots of critters like earthworms and caterpillars as examples in it, is a sign of healthy soil. That is what is essential.
We eat the food we plant. We need to make wise informed choices of what we choose to consume and how we grow food and where it comes from. Consider purchasing dairy products or vegetables that are locally made and grown, rather than food from China. Locally grown food supports the farmers.
Let’s try to choose chemical free lawns and food products. Encourage the gov’t here to adopt the provincial pesticide bans!!1
BLessed Be
* Note: Opt to use wooden cooking utensils rather than plastic. Plastic utensils have chemicals that leech into your food! Is that what you want? Chemicals as a side dish with your fettucine? Yuck. Wooden utensils are safer and don’t harm your food. Bon appetit!
Blessed Be
